Leather conditioner

[Luc]

Well, I like leather shoes. I prefer boots but I need to have some shoes for the office. The boots aren't 'corporate'.

I will start with the beginning. I bought a pair of Doc Martens boots. Nice hard leather. Within a year, the leather cracked. I was treating them with Dubbin every 3-4 weeks. I also bought a pair of Blue Doc Martens at the same time (same Dubbin) and they didn't crack. The blue is wearing off but I'm working with a blue dye to fix them. It's a work in progress every week...

Anyways, since the blue boots didn't crack, I decided to get the same model in Black. The boot has a very soft and flexible leather. I'm very happy with them.

However, I need to move on into shoes. So, I bought a mighty pair of Solovair after reading a thread about boots that was saying that Doc Martens are now made in China.

As much as I like Chinese products , I rather pay someone in England to make the product.

Anyways, got the shoes and the leather is very nice, thick and hard (like my first pair of Doc Martens). I applied some Dubbin on it (as I always do) and then I got some lines forming in the leather where the shoe bend when I walk.

I did a quick search and it seems that Dubbin is good to waterproof the shoe only. It might even dry the leather and make it crack after a while. The website advised that I need mink oil to maintain my leather. Apparently, that stuff will restore the leather and/or nourish it to preserve it longer.

ehow had a few tutorials to repair leather that were interesting.

The shoes that I have are not broken (not after one day). Yes, few blisters here and there so I'm back with the mighty Doc Martens.

I found the stuff, applied it and it seems that my lines almost disappeared... As I don't usually jump in water and my shoes don't often see rain, I am questioning the usage of Dubbin in my case. I think I will stick to mink oil from now on, even if the soft Doc Marten don't have any problems, I'll treat them with Mink oil.

Any comments? Is it right?

[mdunn]

I dont know about shoes, but mink oil conditioned the crap out of an old briefcase ive got

[Kouros]

Better quality leather shoes will not crack.

[Thebigspendur]

Most shoes designed as dress for office work just need some polish. If quality and not abused they should last a long time. For sport type shoes conditioner works well I like Bick. I think its the best conditioner out there.

[cvac]

Conditioning your shoes or boots isn't hard or expensive, it just takes a little bit of time. Whether or not you have the most expensive shoes on the planet, it will probably do some good and will not harm the shoes.

I like Allen Edmonds Conditioner/Cleaner and I use it on all my dress shoes and I'll even use it on my Red Wing boots. Wax polish is good, but using a shoe cream polish before putting on a coat of wax will keep the leather looking nice and supple. Also, salt will break down leather. So if you get salt or whatever else on your shoes or boots in the winter, take a slightly wet washcloth and wipe it off.

The aforementioned cream + wax polish process will also keep the finish from coming off your boots AKA the blue dye. Meltonian shoe cream comes in so many colors, there is probably one that matches your boots. You can also use clear wax polish over the Meltonian if you can't find wax polish to match the color.

And get a horsehair shine brush and and old t-shirt to shine your shoes with. Do not use the same one on different color/boots shoes. You'll end up streaking different colors on your shoes/boots. You need a different brush for each color.

And for wax polish, try some Angelus, Lincoln, or the like instead of Kiwi. Shines up a lot better and costs like a buck more.

[RoyalKooparillo]

One thing to note with paste and wax polishes, although the good ones do moisturize the leather somewhat, their purpose is to protect and enhance the finish on TOP of the leather. To get the best results you need to condition the leather as well, before applying polish. Lexol is a popular and inexpensive leather conditioner that works very well. If you're looking for the creme of the crop, nectar of the gods-sort of thing I haven't found anything that beats Crema Nubiana (used to be Crema Alpina). It's expensive but for fine dress shoes it is amazing. Make sure to give enough time for the conditioner to soak into the leather before using paste or wax polish (by the way, if you haven't tried Saphir polishes they are fantastic).

Now, with thicker, oiled leather such as that found on a lot of Doc Martens and many boots in general, a lot of people prefer to use a heavier leather protector in conjunction with oil. Mink oil can work well but it has a tendency to darken leather quite a lot. My favorite products are made by Obenauf's. Many folks have good luck with Pecard's as well. My routine for oiled leather is to use Obenauf's Heavy Duty Leather Protector once every few months and hit the leather up with Obenauf's Leather Oil every month or so, or after the leather gets wet (keep in mind that water removes oil and dries out leather, so if you get caught in a downpour make sure to hit your boots/shoes with a little oil afterward). Once leather cracks, there's no going back...but if you keep it well moisturized it will last forever. Of course, using cedar trees for nicer leather shoes, not wearing shoes for consecutive days so they have time to dry on the inside, etc. will also help with longevity.

One last thing that I've noticed...some shoes sit on the shelf for a long period of time between manufacturing and selling. I've seen shoes--from inexpensive leather boots to several hundred dollar oxfords--with extremely dry leather that's starting to crack. Brand new, just sitting on a display shelf. Quite a shame.

[Leche]

My favorite products are made by Obenauf's.

+1, Obenauf's is designed to resist hell, and it does it very well btw.

[cvac]

This is why you should always condition new shoes before wearing. You have no idea how long they've been sitting and drying out. And if you end up with a pair of overly dried out shoes for some reason, send them back or return them for another, better looking pair.

One last thing that I've noticed...some shoes sit on the shelf for a long period of time between manufacturing and selling. I've seen shoes--from inexpensive leather boots to several hundred dollar oxfords--with extremely dry leather that's starting to crack. Brand new, just sitting on a display shelf. Quite a shame.

[cvac]

Where can you buy the crema? Heard great things about Saphir polishes as well but never tried them myself.

I haven't found anything that beats Crema Nubiana (used to be Crema Alpina). It's expensive but for fine dress shoes it is amazing. Make sure to give enough time for the conditioner to soak into the leather before using paste or wax polish (by the way, if you haven't tried Saphir polishes they are fantastic).

[RoyalKooparillo]

I got both the Crema Nubiana and Saphir from Franco's Fine Clothier. It looks as though they may be out of the Nubiana at the time being, though. A shame, I was looking to pick up some more myself.

[Luc]

thanks for all the info everyone!

[kprincehouse]

I was wondering about this myself recently. Google searches about leather care led me to, among other places, a car enthusiast forum where people seemed rather knowledgeable about caring for leather upholstery. The advice I read there is that leather care is best done as a two step process: A leather cleaner first, followed by a conditioner. A few products were recommended, Meguiar's and Mothers are the ones I remember. One tip that stood out was to never apply the products directly on the leather, but rather put them on a cloth and then use that on the leather.

I have a few leather goods (couch, notebooks, bag) in addition to two pairs of average-quality work shoes, so I'm looking for something that will work for all of them. I'm also looking ahead to when I pick up a pair of quality dress shoes here sometime in the near future. I ended up ordering a bottle of the Mothers cleaner and a bottle of the Mothers conditioner from Amazon. They're still on the way, so I haven't had a chance to try them.

Anyone have any experience with these products? Specifically, would you use them to clean nice shoes, or is there a better method?

[cvac]

I would probably stick to products specifically marketed for shoes just to be safe. The leather upholstery might be made of thicker, tougher leather or tanned/dyed in a different process compared to shoes...I honestly don't know, but I wouldn't try it unless someone with very good knowledge of shoes (like an experienced cobbler or someone who makes shoes from scratch) said it was okay.

I do agree that cleaning, and conditioning are essential for shoe care, as well as polishing. Waterproofing for rugged boots and waterproof overshoes for dress shoes also. Shoe trees for all if possible.

[Kouros]

My cobbler uses a product called Afta to clean shoes. It really removes all dirt and polish.

[knlgskr]

Cadillac Boot & Shoe Care, Cadillac Shoe Products, Inc., Brighton, MI, cadillacshoe.com; Fiebing's Saddle Soap, Fiebing Co., Inc. Milwaukee, WI; Lincoln E-Z Cleaner, The John Lincoln Co., Sunnyvale, CA: All have worked well for me. Be warned that this also can become an addiction/obsession i.e. so many; so little time. Ain't life grand!?

[Alacrity59]

. . . . . .My favorite products are made by Obenauf's. Many folks have good luck with Pecard's as well. My routine for oiled leather is to use Obenauf's Heavy Duty Leather Protector once every few months and hit the leather up with Obenauf's Leather Oil every month or so, or after the leather gets wet . . .

I use the Obenauf's products on my leather couches and coats. +1 great stuff. I never thought to try it on my dress shoes. The creams I'm using have worked well. ("Money's Worth and Best" if it matters)

[coughdrop]

Just picked this up. Anyone ever tried it? Thought it might be good pre-wax.